Management

Employers are having difficulty offering benefits due to financial constraints caused by the poor economy and escalating
costs, particularly for health care, according to the Credit Union National Association’s (CUNA) 2010-2011 Credit Union Staff Benefits Survey Report.

By Astrid Rial Companies that recruit bilingual talent to serve Spanish-speaking customers seek associates who can effectively communicate in both English and Spanish. Many Spanish-speakers in the US speak colloquial or familiar Spanish. So the challenge for recruiters is to objectively verify that bilingual job candidates can competently communicate in... READ MORE

Bill Cheney will take the reins as CUNA president/CEO July 5, succeeding Dan Mica. Cheney, 49, is president/CEO of the California/Nevada Credit Union Leagues. “After an exhaustive search, in which nearly 100 highly qualified candidates were considered, the CUNA Board has unanimously accepted and certified the executive search committee’s recommendation... READ MORE

Business growth guru Jim Collins , author of “Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap…and Others Don’t,” will keynote The 1 Credit Union Conference . The event, a joint effort between World Council of Credit Unions ( WOCCU ) and Credit Union National Association ( CUNA ), will... READ MORE

Bellco CU Wins UBIT Challenge Last month the U.S. District Court in Colorado ruled in favor of Bellco Credit Union, Greenwood Village, Colo., about limits on the Internal Revenue Service’s authority to collect unrelated business income taxes (UBIT) on several products. The court ruled income derived from the sale of credit... READ MORE

‘Marketing is a great profession for those who like to daydream about what could be.’ Who : Eve Marie Hernández What: VP, Marketing, Generations FCU Where: San Antonio On winning the Texas CU League’s 2009 Marketer of the Year Award : I must share the kudos. The award definitely goes... READ MORE

Consumers are paying down debt, taking out fewer loans, and building up liquid savings balances—major changes in financial behavior due to the Great Recession, says Mike Schenk, vice president of CUNA’s economics and statistics department. While the average savings rate during the ‘70s and ‘80s was around 10%, it fell... READ MORE

The best thing about the economy in 2010, says CUNA Economist Mike Schenk, is that it won’t look like 2009. He cites positive economic signs including the slowdown of job losses, rising wages, and the recovery of equity markets as reasons for greater optimism. What will this mean for credit... READ MORE

Steve Rick Long-term unemployment has serious implications for CU asset quality. Credit union credit quality, which deteriorated during the Great Recession, is directly tied to U.S. unemployment numbers. Long-term unemployment is a serious concern for credit unions’ asset quality. At mid-March, more than 6.1 million people had been unemployed for... READ MORE

Ben Rogers CU values are aligned with the values of today’s business school graduates. Focus MBA students offer strong analytical skills and fresh views of CU operations and strategy. Young adults increasingly look for socially responsible employers. Board focus: Partner with graduate schools to attract MBA students and graduates. Imagine... READ MORE